Must Love Dogs
by Simply Hopeless
Summary: Inu X FB.The one day that Kagome Higurashi decides to cut loose ends her up waking in another man's bed with a wedding band on her finger. And if that doesn't take the cake there is also the problem of her dog wanting to tear her new husband a new one.
1. Chapter 1

Hello Simply Hopeless here with a fic just for you because I am bored. I do not own Inuyasha or Fruits Basket but this story is mine. Each chapter will only be one to five pages long so review quickly if you want to see what happens next. I need to get more then five reviews to update but I do hope you enjoy. So go ahead and read.

Must Love Dogs

Prologue

Fingers quickly curled into silken locks as they tried desperately to hold in the pain that wanted to spill out. It was one of those throbbing pains that intensified if you concentrated on it or heard anything that was above a whisper. So with a moan she knew it was useless to stay asleep if she remained in her current position as she felt the sun trying to pierce through the lids of her doe brown eyes.

It was with effort that she shifted around, her eyes firmly shut, before seeking sanctuary in the warm lump beside her. Her face nuzzled deep into the warmth before she tried to drift back to sleep. Arms coiled around her waist and drew her closer, nearly dragging her on top of the person as they hugged her close.

'Mmm so good,' she thought happily as she drifted off only to pop her eyes open. Her sleep fogged and pain filled head was filled with the sight of a handsome older man underneath of her. His eyes still closed in his sleep… that was until she screamed and jerked away.

Her hands quickly grabbing at her head to cradle it as her head throbbed more fiercely at her sudden movement. Her eyes that had widen in her surprise were quickly screwed shut from the pain of the bright sun before she stumbled and tripped to the window and whisked the curtains closed. Then rounding on the person in the bed she open her eyes and stared at the stranger within it who was silently gathering himself from the floor where he had fallen in his surprise.

Chocolate eyes couldn't help but be drawn to the pair of charcoal gray, silk pajamas that was hanging dangerously low from slim, tan hips before they crawled up further to see a lean, bare abdomen devoid, surprisingly of hair. She would have taken the time to comb and fully appreciate the physique displayed before her except for the fact that she heard someone clearing their throat.

And as her head jerked up to see who had interrupted her feasting eyes she remembered why she screamed in the first place. Digits quickly groped to find anything to throw at him. The pads of her fingers skating across curtain and wall before landing on a alarm clock that she quickly yanked out the wall to throw.

"Who the hell are you!" she cried out before her eyes darted for another object. She huffed to herself when the strange male dodged it but he couldn't dodge her forever once she found the right object. Her eyes already zeroed in on the fat, dog-eared bible on the hotel's bed stand and she was about to chuck that at him when suddenly she was stopped.

A strong hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her flushed against his firm body before wrapping his free arm around her waist so she couldn't pull away. No matter the fact that she tugged to free her hand as she glared at him, he still held her firmly with a small smile on his face.

"Well aren't you feisty," he chuckled bitterly as he tried to calm her down but seeing as she was inconsolable he ventured to answer her question. "My name is Shigure Sohma," the male informed, giving her a dashing smile.

"…" Was all she could manage to say since she had paused to hear him out.

"And you are?" he hinted trying to coax her to speak seeing as she calmed down a bit.

"Kagome Higurashi," Kagome said faintly, unsure whether she should be lolled into a feeling of security with that ready-made smile.

"My wife has such a beautiful name," he conceded as he let go of her, "And a hangover to boot."

"Y… your wife?" she stumbled out unsure she heard correctly. She could feel her legs buckling under her, unable to support her after such a shock.

"Yep though you might not remember all of that after all the drinks we had. But boy could you pack them in…." Shigure continued as he crossed his arms and nodded his head thoughtfully.

Obviously he remembered the night that she didn't. And Kagome just wanted to deny it all but when she looked down at her hand she saw the ring wrapped around her ring finger telling her that it was all true. And all she could think of was, 'Oh god.'


	2. Chapter 2

Hello Simply Hopeless here wishing you a good year. I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to put up the next story but my computer was still out of order and I still had to deal with writer's block. I do not own Fruits Basket or Inuyasha but this story is mine. I thank those who have reviewed and I hope people will grace me with more reviews as a sort of late Christmas present to me. I hope you enjoy and look forward to your comments so without further ado please enjoy the show.

Must Love Dogs

Chapter One

Kagome glared steadfastly at the window not wanting to utter anything to the man beside her as they continued to drive. Her whole body screamed of defiance from the scowl on her lips to the way her body turned, as far away from her male companion as the seatbelt would allow.

Her chin rested in the palm of her hand as she watched the world whirl by in a gray and green blur. The window was halfway down so that she didn't have to deal with the scent of the attractive driver beside her though she had to admit grudgingly that the cologne he used suited him. And not even the fact that the air smacked its cold fingers firmly against her cheeks, did she bother to roll the window up.

"I'll have to make one stop before I take you home," Shigure ventured out. His brown eyes darting across the car to gauge out if his wife's mood had improved before he quickly focused on the road again.

But only dead silence answered him, if of course you excluded the swishing of the air and the steady humming of the car as it moved steadily ahead to their destination.

The male could only let out a sigh as he continued his way towards the Sohma estate. It seemed that ever since the initial shock, of him telling her that she was his wife, had settled in she had only been able to utter only one sentence. 'I want to go home.'

He lifted one of his hands from the steering wheel to scratch at the back of his head while wearing a slightly grim smile on his face. 'But it's silly really when she's my wife. My home is now her home. For better or worse and all that marital stuff the priest said. I can't remember it all off the top of my head,' he thought to himself.

'Though…' his thoughts trailed off as he looked out his window to spot the exit needed to get him off the highway. 'Though my experiences here will surely give me an idea for a new story. Then I'll have time to enjoy teasing Mitchan and devising more plans to get her to make that interesting mixture of despair and horror on her face when she's provoked especially hard.'

Just then he allowed his fisted hand to smack into his palm at his sudden epiphany, his eyes lighting with his devious thought even as the car began to slightly swerve. And with a yelp that once again alerted the dog zodiac to Kagome's presence, he watched as his passenger gripped onto the steering wheel. Half of her body draped across his as she forced the car back on the right path before it could crash into that minivan to their right.

A determined looked graced her features as doe brown eyes flashed in challenge. She didn't really notice that she was closer then she wanted to be to her so-called husband until she heard his comment.

"Mmm your hair smells like pine needles and freshly turned soil, very earth," he murmured as he held a lock of her hair close to his nose.

Suddenly Kagome became rigid, her eyes widening in surprise before she let out a growl of annoyance. But before she could slap his hand away from her hair she found herself half laying, half sitting in his lap as he took up the steering wheel again. She could only blink in confusion as she wondered how he had managed to take off her seatbelt.

"I have the magic touch," he chuckled softly when he noticed her staring absently at her unbuckled seatbelt. He was slightly surprised that she didn't take the chance to slap him or probably pinch him since she seemed volatile a few seconds ago but all she could do was turn her eyes towards him and give him a curious look.

Then slowly and carefully she moved back to her seat while making sure she didn't hit the gearshift in the wrong way. She then went through the motions of buckling her seat belt before crossing her arms over her chest. Her head turning to look out the window again before she grumbled something under her breathe.

"I'm sorry… I didn't quite hear that," Shigure answered with a more than smug smile.

Kagome sighed before she shifted slightly to face him, her crossed arms falling so that her hands lay in her lap. Her chocolate orbs looking up grudgingly before she said the words more clearly for the man.

"You smell nice too," she managed to push reluctantly pass her lips. The lightest of blushes dusting her cheeks before she scuffed to turn and face the car window again only to have him reach over to gently squeeze her hand.

"Now that wasn't so hard was it?" he said checking the road first before beaming at her.

"Painful," she deadpanned. Then suddenly she reached over absently to shake his shoulder. "Is that the Sohma estate up ahead?" she asked slightly startled. Her feeling of being uncomfortable swamped by the overwhelming curiosity that swelled in her chest as they moved through a quiet lane that revealed house after house that were almost identical to each other.

But that wasn't what had taken up her full attention. No all rights were reserved to the perfect movie set scenery that seemed to be seen despite the high, opposing walls that surrounded the inner compound.

"Like what you see?" Shigure asked breezily. He wondered what was more important to look at during this moment; the astonished and spellbound face of his ebony-haired wife or the road that the car was slowly starting to move away from in his carelessness.

"It's… it's beautiful…" Kagome said in amazement. Her eyes pulled reluctantly from the quaint scenery to look at Shigure. "Oh… you're going off the road again," she said off-handedly almost as if she was in a dream. Then turning her brown eyes towards the scene she only seemed to snap out of it at the sound of Shigure's sudden bark of laughter.

"Well that's one way to announce disaster," he chuckled shaking his head.

"If I didn't know any better I would think that you have never driven before," Kagome said suspiciously to herself.

"Wwweelllll…." Shigure couldn't help but drag out the word.

"Well what? And don't smile, this is serious. Have you ever really driven before or not? Because we could have been hurt twice. Twice you hear me," she said almost frantically. Part of her wondered why her life hadn't flashed before her eyes even as she lifted up two digits to emphasis her point.

Shigure quickly and gently grabbed her by her two fingers and kissed the digits before they could be snatched away. "Haa-san has been teaching me for the past month," he said proudly trying to give her a reassuring look. "And the place that we had left an hour or two ago was my first major journey. Before he'd only allow me to drive in vacant lots to practice…" he trailed off thoughtfully.

"Y… you can't be serious. As old as… you just c… can't," she nearly choked own her words as she suddenly paled. Her eyes began to eye the door lock even as her figners inched towards the door handle.

"Ah, ah, ah. We shall not be having any runaway brides here," he tsked as he quickly slammed on the automatic lock button with his fan.

"Where did you get that fan?" Kagome asked distractedly trying to get her mind off her appending doom.

"It was up my sleeve and I feel naked without it," he sighed as he tapped his closed fan against his chin.

The young woman could say nothing to that so she silently turned to look at the looming gates before she found her and the car parked in front and a little to the side of the entrance. Before the motor could fully die, as Shigure turned off the car, she found her husband outside of the car and her side still locked.

She tried to pull the lock up herself but every time she tried it was quickly locked back by Shigure's automatic lock in his hands. So she grudgingly sat back and glared at the dog zodiac. A 'I'm pissed as hell' look on her face as she settled back into her old routine that had been dropped earlier by the excitement of the Sohma compound.

"Aww don't be like that Kagome sweetie," Shigure nearly whined feigning disappointment a bit.

"I just wanted to celebrate my twenty-first birthday and now I'm married to… married to a potential lecher whose death on wheels. My friends don't know where I am and my dogs, Inuyasha and Kouga, have probably lost their minds from worry," she began to rant as she waved her arms wildly. "And it's all your fault," she hissed whipping her head around to glare at Shigure. She quickly tried again for the door only to have it quickly locked again.

"Hey I wasn't the one who ordered more then three daiquiris. Besides your friends were witnesses at the wedding and wished us luck. I doubt they'd leave you with the a potential lecher." Shigure finished neatly as he bent slightly to maintain eye level with the passenger through his window

"You won't be long on your _little_ visit, will you?" she asked coldly looking at the unpredictable man suspiciously.

"Well of course I won't be long. We do have to go home and check up on the children. They'll be so happy that they'll be getting a new mother," he announced brightly spreading his fan out to hide his secretive smile. "Now stay put while I make this important call," he scolded lightly though his eyes were serious.

"B… but…ki… kids?" Kagome stuttered out, bemused that he would leave her after dropping such a heavy bomb.

"Like I said I'll be back as soon as possible," he chirped before quickly walking towards the gates. Already one of the servants from the Sohma inner compound began to bow to him.

"Wait Shigure!" Kagome cried out as she beat her fist against the window, her other hand pressed against the glass. She tried the door again only to realize even without her newfound husband playing with the lock, it had been locked already with the child-safety lock on her side of the door. 'Just great!' she thought, thumping her head against the dashboard.

"Hello Yumi. How has the arthritis been treating you?" Shigure murmured cordially to the woman who bowed before they began to walk inside.

"Shigure don't leave me here by myself damn it!" she howled out after recovering from yet another setback. Her face was flushed with her anger as she smacked her hands against the passenger window.

Shigure hearing this slowly pivoted and waved to the frustrated Kagome before he went through the Sohma gates.

"Already the Missus can't stand to be apart from me," he said mockingly to himself.

"And who, may I ask, is the Missus Shigure?" asked a voice that was full of suspicion as he watched the dog zodiac smiling to himself.

"I… hey… didn't expect to bump into you so soon Haa-san" chuckled Shigure nervously. He wondered how he'd explain this one to his childhood friend.

To be continued…

A/N: Hope you enjoy… can't write anymore… it's hot and 6:19 a.m. here. But hope you review so I can continue as soon as possible.


	3. Chapter 3

Hello Simply Hopeless here finally, finally updating after eons of being away. I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to put out the next chapter but I'm really miffed at fanfiction right now. Well not the readers and reviewers of this story but the ones who read but do not review my other stories. They've been doing that a lot lately to my other stories and it's really put me into a real writer's slump. So I ended up writing for another anime for a while to help get my spirits up. But I'm back now and if this chapter goes well I'll promise, promise, promise to update next week. And if I don't despite the awesome comments, may Kyo scratch my eyes out in cat form.

Anyway… I do not own Fruits Basket or Inuyasha but this story is mine. I thank those who have reviewed and I hope people will still give me reviews despite me not updating in a long while. I really do hope you enjoy and look forward to your comments so without further ado please enjoy the show.

Must Love Dogs

Chapter Two

"I asked you who is this Missus, you've mentioned? Did you somehow manage to get yourself in trouble on your writer's retreat?" Hatori asked sternly, a hint of disappointment in his voice. 'If where he went really was a writer's retreat,' the doctor thought to himself. It could have been an elaborate attempt for Shigure to escape his editor again for all he knew but he'd reserve his scorn until he could confirm the severity of his best friend's digression.

"Ha, ha you take me too seriously Haa-san. My saying Missus was just the general rambling of a noted novelist thinking up a new plotline for a story. Maybe it will be the sequel to 'Summer-Colored Sky'," he murmured thoughtfully even as he looked everywhere else but at the dragon. He could already feel himself perspiring as he fluttered his fan nervously to keep from looking too guilty. "Unllllesssss, you're jealous that I might have found a replacement for you. But you don't have to worry Haa-san I could never replace you not in a million, gagillion years," Shigure cried out suddenly throwing himself at the doctor to hug and hopefully distract.

"Nice try Shigure," Hatori murmured disdainfully. He blocked his cousin's approach by allowing his face to smack into his medical clipboard when he tried to approach. He felt little remorse as Shigure's face collided with a nice sounding 'smack'. He removed the object only when he was sure that he was in no danger of being hugged before he looked at his cousin again.

"Why are you always so mean to me Haa-san?" Shigure whined out even as he rubbed at nose that had taken the brunt of the damage. It didn't really hurt like he was making it out to seem but he needed time to come up with a plausible enough excuse. Or at least tell his cousin in a way that he wouldn't try to throttle him with said clipboard. 'Would he?'

"You've been playing around with lives again, haven't you?" Hatori stated flatly.

"Aha, what makes you think that Haa-san?" Shigure squeaked out, an octave too high as he nervously rubbed the back of his head.

"You are clearly hiding something which is evidence by your avoiding eye contact, trying to distract me by acting overly excited and don't think I haven't seen you perspiring profusely," the doctor said, ticking each point off on his fingers.

"…" Was all Shigure could say to his cousin's sleuthing skills.

"Even if I didn't have such damning evidence against you I'd still think you're hiding something from me because I received a call from your hysterical editor Micchan. How she got my number is beyond me, but she was crying frantically and threatening to take her life I didn't help her. It seems that apparently she received a message on her answering machine saying that she should not bother to look for you because you had decided to elope. I had first wanted to brush away such an obvious lie since you'd say anything to avoid writing your final chapter of your story. But this mysterious 'Missus'… What kind of fresh hell have you brought me this time, Shigure?" he requested menacingly even as he pulled out a needle from his pocket.

"Y… you act like you always have to clean up my messes and you wouldn't use that on me? Would you? That's a bit criminal, isn't it?" Shigure said in a quivering voice. He shrunk back a bit. He already hated when his best friend gave him shots so to be threatened with a needle was quite terrifying.

"It's not criminal when you missed your yearly shots Shigure. As your doctor I'm obligated to give you them to you whether you want them or not. You'll have to get them eventually but how painful the injections will be depends on how quickly you can answer me," Shigure said with unsympathetic eyes.

"Fine, fine if there is no way around it," sighed out Shigure heavily. He took a step back to be on the safe side before he began to explain. "The truth is that I may have gotten myself… or more specifically someone else in a little trouble. I got married over the weekend to this lovely girl and…" he trailed off then leaned closer to whisper this part. "I think she might be able to break the curse."

Hatori said nothing as he looked at his cousin critically in hopes of catching the dog in a lie but it seemed that the man before him seemed dead serious about this. He didn't want to hope but he knew that Shigure was just as eager to break the curse as he was. Even more so because he once admitted, when Yuki and Kyo where out on a double date with Tohru and Kagura, that if he could make it happen, he wouldn't feel guilty about whatever means he had to use to get that end. Even if someone gets hurt in the process he wouldn't stop until he realized that dream.

But how could Shigure really be sure that this girl, he tricked into marrying, could be the key to undoing the curse? "Why are you so sure?" he finally voiced into the crisp, cold air of autumn.

"It's because…" He allowed for a dramatic pause before flinging his fan open. "She's hugged me numerous times so far, sometimes without meaning to. But I haven't changed, not once. She has to be the key. Not even Tohru could—" He began before he was cut off by the sound of a roaring engine. His eyes widen in surprise even as he cursed and threw his fan down in frustration. Quickly he took off for the gates with Shigure close behind him. Fear couldn't help but ice his veins as he saw his only hope peeling off in his car with a pissed off Kagome behind the wheel. 'Crap!'

"So was that her? Was that, as you so put it, 'the key'?" Hatori asked even as he watched their only possible chance drive away to Kami knows where.

"Well look at that. The little minx managed to get away," Shigure laughed bitterly. He had taken the keys, not trusting her with them still in the ignition but he hadn't factored that she could possibly hotwire the car and escape. 'I should have handcuffed her to the passanger door,' he thought regretfully. But he left those in his other yukata.

"Shouldn't you be more worried?" Shigure asked nonchalantly.

"I should, shouldn't I?" Shigure said while nodding his head sagely. He was already turning back around to retrieve his fan, apparently appearing on the surface to be unfazed despite him taking off in a hurry earlier. He picked up his fan, dusted off a bit of grass from the lacquered wood before tucking it up his sleeve. "Bbbuuuutttt, I have this," the dog zodiac crowed out proudly as he pulled something else out of his sleeve. It was a sparkly something that made the dragon zodiac twist his lips back in disgust that a grown man would have such an item.

"You stole that from her, didn't you?" Hatori asked hoping that his best friend wasn't silently trying to tell him something with that item.

"Of course I did. Isn't it cute? Almost something a high school girl would have," he murmured almost dreamily as he rubbed his face against a bejeweled Hello Kitty cellphone with a hello kitty phone charm dangling from it. "I wonder if she still has her high school uniform?" he said more to himself.

"I feel sorry for her," Hatori said bluntly, turning away in disgust at his best friend's lasciviousness.

"Haa-san, don't be like that. I was only joking," Shigure whined as he grabbed the back of the doctor's sleeve.

"Yes, hi Mrs. Higurashi? No, no I'm not Kagome but I am her husband and… Yes, well yes that is shocking she had a wedding without you present. But if you'd allow me a few minutes I can explain everything. Plus I have pictures of the joyous occasion," he offered the woman even as he pulled out a handful of photos from the vortex hidden inside his sleeves.

Hatori could only shake his head in wonder as Shigure roped another victim into his scheme. He had already told the dog that he wouldn't support his best friend's actions but he wouldn't stand in his way as an enemy either. He only frowned in disapproval as Shigure scrawled what seemed to be his wife's address on his arm with a felt pen he must have retrieved from his sleeve before giving the dragon the thumbs up.

"Yes, well I'll see you in a little bit. Bye… Mom," he said smiling before hanging up the phone. "She seems like a sweet woman and I've always wanted to find a nice mother-in-law."

"I guess you'll be needing a ride," sighed out Hatori. He may have offered but there was no way he was leaving his wayward cousin alone with that poor girl without mediating in some way.

"Well after my bride ran off with my rental car, a lift would be appreciated," he said, sounding pleased that Hatori was willing to help. Now if only Ayame would show up and they could ride off to save the princess as the Mabduchi Trio.

"You've had fun without me again, haven't you Gure-san!"

And speak of the devil…

A/N: As for the Shigure/Kagome pairing I just love unusual pairings. And I think even though Shigure sometimes makes you want to just pull out your hair and just scream in frustration, he's really something else once you get to know him. Besides he has a pleasant way of making a situation worse while still keeping his head. It amuses me, so it shall stay as such.

I'm planning to get my anime geek on at a convention next week on July 27th and to relieve the boredom of standing in long lines I'm going to update a few stories in the morning so I can read the comments in the long lines. Since I'm almost finish writing the next chapter to this I'm hoping that if this chapter gets enough reviews I'll update it then. But that's up to you so please be kind to your authoress and leave a message about this chapter. Ciao.


	4. Chapter 4

Hello Simply Hopeless here. I knew it had been a while since I last updated but I was stunned by the fact that I only got only 3 reviews for my efforts last chapter. Sure my chapters are short but I really think these chapters our exciting and action packed but I guess I was wrong. It's just when you get a combined total of 50 for the first two chapters, 3 sort of floors you. But hopefully this chapter will do better, especially if it's to meet the cut. So enjoy and please do comment on the chapter if you like it.

Must Love Dogs

Chapter Three

"It really wasn't my intentions to leave you out of the joyous occasion, Aya. If you'd like you could still feel free to give me a bachelor party that no one will ever forget." Shigure offered playfully tapping his cousin on the nose with the edge of his folded fan.

"So I would have been your best man?" Aya asked, suddenly pacified and inwardly preening at the glowing title.

"Of course," chirped up the dog zodiac; he smiled happily with a thumbs up of approval.

"I will make your bachelor party more glamorous than even your wedding. It will be so **glorious** that on your death bed when you murmur your last words it will be, 'Ah, Aya the memories of that night… they still burn my retinas.'" Aya dropped his voice dramatically low to say what Shigure would say. Then he practically bounced in his excitement as he shoved up his sleeve to reveal his bare arm. "Look, Look, I get goose bumps just thinking of it. I'm such a genius I even scare myself," Aya declared, thrusting his arm under Hatori's face to see.

"How ominous of you," replied Hatori blandly as he nonchalantly pushed his friend's arm from his face.

Undeterred Ayame continued excitedly while pantomiming what would happen during the bachelor party."I of course will step out of the custom made cake to sing for you, wearing a spicy sequin number with a slit up to about here," he pointed dramatically a little above mid-thigh of his leg.

"How glamorous/idiotic of you," Shigure and Hatori replied simultaneously before lifting their eyebrow up at what their other companion had just said.

"Of course, of course and indeed I'll have to get out those special clothes that I—" Aya continued as if they both had replied in the positive only to pout inwardly at his dear Hatori interrupting him.

"Did you two dimwits forget that there won't be a point of a bachelor party if we can't find Shigure's, and I use this term loosely, 'blushing bride'," snapped Hatori. He was frustrated by his two best friends' stupidity and willingness to throw themselves into fantasy during a crisis-like situation.

"Ah, Ha-kun, are you jealous that I made Ayame my best man? I will be more than willing to have two best men," he cooed, plastering himself against the irritate doctor's side and poking his cheek playfully with his fan. That was until Hatori vehemently snatched the fan away and through the confiscated fan as far as it would go. "So mean. I see now there is no point in distracting you at all Haa-san," Shigure chuckled bitterly as he watched his fan wink out of existence.

"You know, I pity your wife more and more each time you open your mouth. So before I aide your wife by testifying against you in your future divorce hearing, why don't go find her using the directions you got from her mother," Hatori suggested stiffly then walked towards his shiny, new, silver car expecting the idiot brigade to follow behind him.

'If only Shigure could be considerate of the people who have to clean up behind him…' thought Hatori with a sigh of frustration. He reached for his pack of cigarettes in his vest pocket as a stress reliever but then realized he didn't want his new car to smell like an ashtray. So he reached for a bottle of aspirin instead before swallowing two dryly. "Get in!"

"Oh, so forceful and straight to the point Hatori, I like it very much on you," Ayame said in approval as he slid gracefully into the backseat.

"And so once more the Mabduchi trio are together and off to another wild adventure," narrated Shigure auspiciously as he slid into his seat. He had by this point produced yet another fan from his black hole of a sleeve in order to hide his mouth while sounding mysterious.

Even when Hatori gave him a withering look as he started up his car, Shigure continued to play up his adventurous role. It was because if he allowed himself to truly reflect on his rash decision he would have to take into account Akito and that catastrophic scene made his blood run cold. So once more he quickly escaped into fantasy by pointing his fan dramatically forward. "Westward, ho!"

WHERE THE RUNAWAY BRIDE IS NOW, AN HOUR LATER

"Inuyasha… Kouga… What am I going to do?" The kneeling Kagome asked as she switched from wrapping her arms around a half wolf, half husky dog to wrapping her arms around a pure white Samoyed.

She had driven quickly home as soon as she could escape her 'husband' and after traveling up the many steps of her shrine home; she was both exhausted physically and emotionally. So with a weak smile to her concern mother and a murmured excuse to Souta and her grandfather, she quickly made her way to the backyard to be greeted by her only two comforts.

Her hand blindly reached out to pet Kouga's head when the dog whined and licked her ear in comfort, even as she buried her face against Inuyasha's thick, white fur. She knew that they couldn't really reply to her, they were just dogs and not the traveling companions from a few years ago. But for some reason she felt that these two truly embodied the canine demons that had tagged along with her whether she wanted them to or not. It was just the thought of Inuyasha and Kouga watching over her now after so many hundreds of years that gave her a semblance of comfort.

"Ah, so you are a dog lover. How fortunate for me," said a somewhat familiar male voice from behind her. His voice immediately caused Kagome to snap her head up in alarm and her dogs to growl warningly at the intruder.

"How did you get… Wh… Who let you in?" Kagome hiccupped even as she quickly moved to wipe her tear-stained face against her arm. She didn't want 'that man' to see how distraught she truly was because he would only find some amusement in it.

"O… Oh well my new mother-in-law, lovely woman by the way, was gracious enough to let me in. She seemed thrilled when I told her that I was not only her new son-in-law but also the person who written the novel she was reading at the time in the kitchen. She tells me it's actually your book. How lovely that you have taken a liking to my material, if not me yet," Shigure announced, holding out his, now signed, book out to her. A pang of guilt couldn't help but prick his heart at seeing Kagome's puffy eyes; but if she chose to ignore her tears then he would honor her by ignoring them too.

"It was a gift from a friend…" trailed off Kagome reluctantly as she stood and took the book. She was careful to make sure their fingers didn't touch when she reached for the item before then proceeding to lead the interloper back into her house. "I use it to level off my table. **See**," she paused in her speech to jam the offered book under the coffee table in the living room. Kagome then turned and smacked her hands down on the table to show how sound it was now. "Better than getting a new table," she said despite the table tilting upward a little now.

"Ah ha, I know that you believe this is a complete mistake and maybe this is one colossal one," he said with a grudging smile and a shake of his head at his new wife's stubborn determination. "But we are married and I'm all for giving this whole marriage thing a try if you are," the dog zodiac said sincerely before tapping his chin thoughtfully with his fan. "Give it a month or so Kagome and if you still think that there isn't any potential in our marriage then I'll gladly divorce you. Give you an annulment if that sounds better," Shigure suggested before venturing to glance at the girl.

"Y… you will?" Kagome asked hesitantly. She frowned thoughtfully at her dogs nosing close to her, a furry body on either side as if they had declared themselves her natural support system and protectors, which in a way they were. She wondered if there wasn't some trick somewhere in his gracious offer, some loophole that she might trip into. Her fingers buried into Kouga and Inuyasha's fur before she decided to meet her would-be-husband in the eye.

"In a heartbeat," he smiled warmly as soon as she looked up. He took pleasure in the tentative smile that she returned to him before taking further pleasure in the words he had to say next. "But then again by divorcing you I shall be looked down upon and shall always be known as the outcast and black sheep of the Sohma family. But I'm willing to risk that for your sake," he said with relish. He secretly hoped to assuage his guilt for dragging her into this mess with producing more of her smiles.

"Idiot," Kagome mumbled. But she couldn't help the smallest of smiles. Shigure did somehow manage to cheer her up in his roundabout way. "So how did you get here? I took your car so…" she trailed off awkwardly, a little embarrassed now.

"A friend drove me. Him and my other cousin are waiting down in the car to see if I was successful in kidnapping the princess," he said secretively, smiling.

"Sounds a bit criminal and has only confirmed my suspicion that I've married a weirdo," snorted Kagome, shaking her head in grudging amusement before she stilled, eyes widen in surprise. "I… I… So we really are married, aren't we?" She knew he said so earlier and the ring around her ringer finger seemed pretty real but it didn't truly sink in as something other than a cosmic joke until now.

"Quite married," the dog zodiac agreed tapping his closed fan against his chin thoughtfully.

"So… I guess I have no choice at the moment but to agree with your suggestion. One month, I'll give this one, maybe two months tops to consider. And if everything doesn't work out…" she trailed off, biting her bottom lip.

"Yes, then we'll divorce," chirped up Shigure a little too happily.

"So what did you tell my mother to let you leave us alone for so long?" she asked curiously, noticing not one of her three family members had tried to spy in on their conversation. It was really weird because Gramps was especially nosy.

"I told your mother and the others that you are now the proud mother of three children. She seemed so very ecstatic that she fainted right away," Shigure offered in his bemusement.

"Oh, I'm glad she… WHAT?!" Kagome screeched and wondered, not for the first time as she ran towards the kitchen, what had she gotten herself into.


	5. Chapter 5

Hello, Simply Hopeless here with a new chapter for you. I do not own Fruits Basket or Inuyasha but this story is mine and I am so glad you guys like it so far. Admittedly, I was sad when I updated after a long time only for the third chapter to only get 3 reviews. But it had been a while and now last chapter, the fourth one got 8 reviews. It's still not as much as I had the first two chapters but we are getting back to the amount I had before slowly but surely. So show your support and tell me what you like about this story and hope to see you again real soon.

**Must Love Dogs **

Chapter Four

"Mom! Mom, are you okay?" cried out Kagome as she rounded the corner of the hallway to dash into the kitchen. Her would-be-husband followed her at a more controlled pace, a look of bemused amusement on his face.

"So it's true? Y… you're a stepmother and I… I… how many grandchildren do I have?" asked Kagome's mother in a shaky voice. She had already been helped up into a chair where her son, Souta, was already offering her a glass of water to drink.

"Three little ones although the third is more or less adopted," Shigure said matter-of-factly. He didn't think his presence was fully welcomed in the kitchen so he took a position leaning his back against the kitchen's doorway, his arms crossed over his chest.

"So that's… I… I'm a grandmother and a… a mother-in-law," gasped out Kagome's mother. She felt once again lightheaded and a little disappointed. She had always pictured her daughter's wedding day ever since she knew she was having a girl. She had a box full of trinkets and old wedding magazines that she would have taken out of the attic when the right someone proposed to her daughter. She had honestly thought she had time but this… this was a little too much, too soon.

"For as long as your daughter will have me, yes you are," Shigure said reassuringly. But the way that Kagome was looking disapprovingly at him proved that his way of reassuring was not working at all. "Kagome, you agreed to give this a chance. Till death do us part and all that jazz," the dog zodiac insisted with a wry smile. He didn't need this little setback to hinder his overall goal.

Kagome was just about to say some choice words but just then all the occupants in the kitchen heard a male voice cautiously calling out to them in the hallway. "Is everything okay in here?"

"Ah, Haa-san you came in. I didn't see you as the type for breaking and entering," chirped Shigure cheerfully. He smacked the good doctor on the back as he entered the room, slightly relieved that the grumpy dragon had come to his rescue whether he knew it or not. He knew that he was only making the situation worse by joking around but that was one of his ways of dealing with an awkward situation.

"Of course not, an old gentleman allowed me in after I expressed concern on how things were wrapping up inside. Honestly, Aya has grown impatient and had started to fiddle with the car radio dials. So in order to stop myself from lecturing him or triggering a story from him as an entertainment alternative, I made my escape up here," he explained truthfully.

Then in all business-like mode he pinpointed the young woman he could only assume was the runaway bride and bowed deeply to her, hand over his heart; it caused his cousin to raise his eyebrow in amusement as Hatori acted like some old-timey representative of the Sohma family. "I am Dr. Hatori Sohma and I would like to first begin with apologizing for my cousin's idiocy. He's been impulsive ever since I've known him and unfortunately speaking as his best friend, that has been quite a long time," he said remorsefully.

"A little harsh, huh Haa-san," sighed out Shigure in his bemused amusement. 'Honestly,' he thought. 'With friends like these, who needed enemies?' But he had to admit reluctantly that in many ways Hatori had acted as an ambassador of peace to those Shigure had unwittingly **and** intentionally pissed off.

"So you are telling me you didn't drug, marry and kidnap her in some shape and/or form?" demanded Hatori in mild disbelief as he straightened up. He, himself, was fully under the assumption that the crafty dog had planned this marriage if only to harness the power that his blushing bride had in her small body. He couldn't see how the petite raven could break their curse but usually there was a distorted but good reason to Shigure's madness.

"He what!?" squeaked out Kagome's mother. Her fingers were clamped down on the table as she tried to stand shakily up despite her two children begging her to sit. She was happy that her daughter was married, even if it was unexpected; but if this was the circumstances behind this then she wouldn't have it. "Please my dear husband Hiro up in heaven, please give me the strength to strangle him," the petite woman gritted out between clenched teeth as she stood, erect and trembling.

"Mom, please sit down. Souta help me make her sit!" Kagome begged, clamping her hand on one of her mother's arms. She had hoped that the newcomer would reassure her mother and not rile her up like he had, most likely unintentionally.

"Yeah, sis," Souta agreed in his bemusement. He hadn't figured his mother would act like a mother bear when it came to his children. But the way she tried to wrench away from their grip, he knew that she would do anything to protect them even if it meant premeditated murder.

"Well… well we were both intoxicated and it wasn't like I forced her to marry me or anything Mrs. Higurashi. I was going to take her home after I checked in with the head of our family. I… I admit our marriage was quite unusual; but I'm sure I could grow to love her if you give me half the chance," he tried to pacify the woman who seemed to be eyeing the butcher knife a little too hard. He made a point to step into the room if only to inch the cutlery away from the traumatized mother with the help of his trusty fan.

"Kagome-san I offer once more my deepest apologies. I honestly didn't mean to upset your mother further. Mrs. Higurashi for whatever questionable reasons my cousin here entered into a relationship with your daughter, he is otherwise harmless; and will not force himself onto her. If she wants she will have her own room in his home until she is ready to accept the position as his wife. You have my word as a member of the prestigious Sohma family that no harm will come to your daughter; and if you want to drop by to visit her in her new home then you are more than free to," Hatori began diplomatically realizing the way in which he had erred.

Mrs. Higurashi stilled, taking the good doctor's words into consideration. He seemed sincere in what he was saying and the man that her daughter was married to seemed 'harmless' as the doctor had suggested. Especially so when she considered the way in which he smiled apologetically to her before he secreted a fan up his sleeve. 'What is up with that fan, anyway?' She thought this vaguely even as she nodded her head in grudging acceptance. "If my daughter is willing to give this a chance, then I will too," she murmured reluctantly.

"Mom…" Kagome spoke up in relief and appreciation.

"Come Kagome, there is a lot of packing to do. We'll pack for two days and maybe tomorrow or the day after we'll pack the rest to send off to your hus… hus…" Kagome's mother could barely wheeze out the last part feeling lightheaded and breathless each time she tried.

"Mom I need you to breathe. Breathe! It's going to be alright," Kagome reassured her mother after panicking a little. Her hand quickly moved to pat her mother's back before occasionally rubbing soothing circles until her mother stopped hyperventilating. She then turned her head to glower at her grinning would-be husband over her shoulder before gently guiding her mother out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

"I'm good, I'm good. I'm like this because my baby's growing up so much," squeaked out Kagome's mother voice somewhere in the region of the stairs.

"It's nice seeing you Mom!" the dog zodiac called out loud enough for Kagome and her mother to see. His smile had yet to leave his lips even as he hid it behind the fan as Kagome's brother Souta and his cousin, Hatori looked disapprovingly at him.

"Yes, but how long can you say that when Akito catches wind of this. You know 'he' will not appreciate this kind of betrayal," whispered Hatori, coming closer to his cousin. His hand had come to rest on the writer's arm, giving it a hard squeeze when he came to the name Akito as if wanting to emphasis the pain their family head invoked in the others.

"So pessimistic Haa-san, if I simply explain everything to the head… Well 'he' is reasonable enough to understand," Shigure switched his words but could already see his smile falling as he thought of the unpredictability of their fearless leader.

"That's odd, I never heard anyone use Akito and reasonable in the same sentence before," sighed out Hatori in bemusement. He just wished his cousin would grow up a little and realize that he put everyone at risk with his actions.

"Did you make a joke Haa-san? You did, didn't you? When did you grow a funny bone?" Shigure asked, once more chipper. He seemed to latch onto that in order to drag himself away from thinking about the frightening near future.

"It's like I'm friends with two-year-olds," grumbled Hatori as he walked passed a nervously chuckling Shigure. "Ask Kagome to drive you back in the rental, I'm taking Ayame home before he disturbs the neighborhood," called out the good doctor over the shoulder. He didn't even bother to look back at his troublesome cousin. Only paused to glance briefly at two disgruntled, massive family dogs that brushed passed him on his way to possibly confront his cousin. 'Well he is a dog zodiac. He'll be fine with them,' he thought dismissively even as he gave the grandfather a nod of goodbye before making his journey down the shrine steps.

BACK IN THE KITCHEN

Shigure had no real time to recover from his best friend dismissing him as he did. He knew that he had caused the doctor unnecessary stress that was usually reserved for Ayame and Akito respectively to give him. But at the moment he had more things to worry about then his cousin as Kagome's half husky, half wolf dog and her pure white Samoyed dog, trotted into the room to give Shigure the coldest stares ever.

"Oh well, how are the two of you? It seems like your mistress and I have tied the knot so we'll be one big, happy family," Shigure greeted warmly. He felt slightly at ease as he bent down to pet one of the dogs head only to let out an undignified squeak as the Samoyed dog Inuyasha let out a loud bark, followed by Kouga snarling his agreement.

"Okay… Maybe I presumed to suddenly that you two would be okay with me petting you. But honestly, don't you guys know that I'm like one of you? I'm one of the good guys." Shigure whispered aloud, tossing Souta a slightly nervous, somewhat confident smile even as he knelt in front of the two dogs. He could understand why they felt a need to defend their mistress, especially since it seemed that he was the cause of both his mistress's and mistress's mother's distress.

Both dogs curled back their lips in warning, showing sharp canines as hesitant fingers reached out for them again.

"You know sis is going to want to bring them with her," said Souta casually, leaning his body against the kitchen counter. He didn't see any point in helping the stranger who had caused both his mother and sister stressed without feeling very remorseful about it. It was in fact, sort of hilarious that the family dogs were unraveling the confident man who looked up nervously with an unsure smile as if the teen would call off his dogs at any moment.

"Are they always like this?" Shigure asked, trying once more and failing to pet them as one snapped warningly at the air close to the handsome male's hand.

"Only with the people they don't like. So there really isn't use trying to win them over with toys or treats. If they don't like you then… Well then you're screwed," Souta said simply, shrugging his shoulder nonchalantly even as he gave a smug, self-satisfying smile.

"I'm usually really good with dogs. All dogs really like me, you know. I have an affinity with them," Shigure began nervously as he quickly stood up. He had tried to look into the amber and teal eyes of the dogs to persuade them that he meant them well. But they stubbornly refused to give into the influence of the dog zodiac so he had stood before he lost a limb.

"They aren't just dogs, Shigure. They are most likely the reincarnation of my two exes Inuyasha and Kouga. And if the way they acted in the past when they were each other's rivals was any clue of how they'll treat another love rival like you now, then you don't stand much of a chance with me. Not unless you win their approval," Kagome announced smugly, even as she spun the keys around her index finger. "I'm of course driving and they'll be watching from the backseats. Got that dear husband?" the raven haired woman smiled sweetly at the befuddled Sohma even as she blew kisses to her now loving dogs.

"M… Maybe you're right. Maybe we sh… should take things slow? How about you live here for a while and we try dating first?" Shigure half offered, half pleaded as two massive dogs practically knocked Shigure to stand to either side of their mistress.

"No uh. Now who's getting cold feet? We're in this together. In sickness and in health and all that jazz," Kagome quipped. She reached to tug on a shell-shocked Shigure's hand so he was forced to follow. She only paused to offer him two large suitcases for him to carry before she trotted down the stairs with a well-loved, well-used yellow backpack filled to the brim with dog kibble to tie the two dogs who barked in excitement to follow the miko on their new adventure.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Shigure questioned in bemusement as he tried to shoulder both suitcases with his kneels buckling.

"Well hell of an adventure, if anything else," Souta replied, amused to see his big sister out and about like the old days. "Now let's go. I want to check out your digs too," the teenage soccer player declared, giving Shigure a friendly swat on the back, which practically knocked him over.

"How the hell can things get worse?" grumbled Shigure as he steadied himself back up. He slowly navigated down the stairs to follow after his wife, brother-in-law and their two massive dogs when suddenly his cell phone began to ring. He quickly answered it after much fumbling only to suddenly release the suitcases and watch it tumble down the temple steps when he heard who on the other line.

"A… Akito?"


	6. Chapter 6

Hello, Simply Hopeless a.k.a. Assassin's Kiss here with an update. I know what you are going to say. 'Oh my fucking god, what the hell happened to you? I like this story so much yet you take forever to update? You should update sooner, like now. Update.' My response is… writing is a bitch and a half sometimes because one minute you have a brilliant idea and then suddenly it dries up like the Sahara desert. I honestly had to have the right combination of music on my ipod to motivate me to write and keep the ideas flowing long enough where I thought it was okay to cut off. I kid you not my chapters are getting longer and longer slowly but surely even though I had wanted them to be two to three page chapters. I had fun writing a lecherous Shigure and I hope you enjoy him teasing Kagome. If you want to help me get over my writer's block then please review. I like when people talk about what they liked about the chapter or suggest what they might want to see next. Well hope to see you guys sooner than later. Ja Ne and enjoy the read.

Must Love Dogs

Chapter Five

/Shigure, what's this I hear about you getting married? I know I must have heard wrong from the servants. So tell me, _pet_, is it true? Did my loyal canine betray his mistress?/

The questioning voice was husky, almost breathy and intimate as if the Sohma family head was hotly whispering her inquiry into his ear. He could almost feel her cold, skinny fingers on the back of his neck; the scrape of her sharp nails digging gentle, red furrows against his tender flesh just like the last time he visited.

She sounded civil, too civil, and that was what worried him as he felt his blood drain from his face and his fingertips go numb. He grew up with the sickly leader of their clan and knew firsthand how violent and possessive the frail woman could be. The idiom, 'Hell has no Fury like a woman scorned' embodied Akito to a perfect 'T'. And she made a point to bring hell to her zodiac subjects by tearing them down with her sharp tongue, sick mind and the sharp talons of her fingernails.

Everything faded to white noise as he vaguely realized that Kagome seemed to be calling for him. A worried look marred her features as the raven-haired beauty carefully made her way back up the temple steps to where he stood frozen. She was already touching his face, feeling his forehead, and cupping his cheek; but he wasn't there anymore. Not mentally anyway. Akito had this knack of knocking down all of his and the other zodiac's defensive walls and taking them to a moment of greatest weakness and fear that she had created especially for them.

He knew he was physically there close to the bottom of the shrine steps. But in his mind he was trying his best not to move as Akito tore into Haa-san's face after he announced his engagement to his medical assistant, Kana. Hatori said beforehand,' not to make a rash move'; but what honestly defined 'rash' when everything inside of him screamed to protect the man who he had shared his dream with long ago?

He was already moving, ripping a vengeful God from the bleeding Hatori. His limbs trembled but his grip was firm as she screamed, kicked and clawed at the air as if her sheer willpower would overcome her weak constitution and draw her closer to Hatori to claw at his other eye. Shigure flinched at every curse she spat into the air; his eyes trying not to look at the blood trickling down half Hatori's face. Or the way Kana had openly sobbed and murmured 'sorry' over and over again like a sick mantra as she wrapped her thin arms around the broken doctor.

'If I had just been faster, then mayb—' Shigure thought once more for the hundredth time before Akito interrupted his troubled flashback.

/Are you listening to me Shigure?!/ she hissed. She was highly displeased at the long pause of silence that followed her questioning.

"I… I…" sputtered the novelist. It was as if he was a squirming, pubescent teen instead of the respected author and adult that he was.

/Did you really think I would allow—/ Akito fairly snarled out before suddenly the words were cut off.

Shigure blinked stupidly down at his thumb that had moved to end the call. It must have been an ancient self-preservation instinct that kicked in, even as he continued to stare dumbfounded at the phone with goose bumps riddling his arms. He practically bit through his lip as the phone began to ring angrily, undoubtedly an irate Akito wanting to know how he should be punished for this latest indiscretion.

But before he could organize his thoughts and hit the 'talk' button, his pretty, little wife had snatched his phone from him. She hit 'talk' for him but instead of handing it meekly back, she pressed it to the shell of her own ear. "I don't know who you are, but I'm not going to allow you to intimidate my husband."

/Do you know who I am?/ Akito continued in her snarling tone. Her anger was surely mounting at this point.

"I don't give a flying fig who you are. You're obviously a bully and I won't allow you to terrorize any of my family whether old or new. Not without answering to me first," Kagome said firmly.

Her chocolate brown eyes were lit with fierce determination. Her cheeks were flushed with anger at the rude person, who must have switched to some rather nasty language by the way her lips tightened and her eyebrows slammed together in disgust and disbelief.

"I highly doubt you could force your foot up there... And I'd like to see you try because I won't go down that easily…" Were the last words out of Kagome's lips before Shigure watched in bemusement as his petite wife slammed the cell phone close, effectively ending the call. Then as if that was not enough for her to relieve her frustration, she hurled Shigure's phone to the side of the stairs. His disembodied 'no' coming too late as his gray eyes watched his device disappear into the foliage nearby.

Shigure's legs suddenly buckled as he all but sat hard on the stone steps underneath him. His long legs were bent at awkward angles as he slowly dragged bewildered eyes from the last place he saw his cell phone to refocus them back on his spitfire of a wife. 'What the hell did I marry into?' he thought, unsure whether to see this as a good or bad thing yet.

"Who was that and what was that all about?" Kagome asked in concern. She impatiently waved her baby brother away when it looked like he and her dogs would join them on the steps. Then she turned doe brown eyes of concern towards her would-be-husband. Her earlier frustration was neatly tamped down as she sought a perch next to Shigure on the stairs. Her hands carefully picked up one of his large hands in her smaller ones so that she could gently rub them as if somehow this simple action would draw him out of his troubled thoughts and bring him back to her.

"I… No one important," Shigure stumbled out. His lips were quick to form a practiced smile that he used when he didn't want anyone to read more into what he was actually thinking and feeling. He was after all a ripple and ripples where eager to escape those who tried to draw them closer.

"You wouldn't have reacted that violently if it was no one important, Shigure. You didn't even respond to your own name when I called you? I… I know I don't know you. We have only been together for two days now, but for now you are my husband. For better or worse your concerns are mine until we get this annulled. So I am going to ask you one more time, are you sure you're alright?"

Kagome couldn't help but bite her bottom lip in both worry and frustration. She didn't know much about Shigure besides his name and the fact that he was a quirky pervert; but there was something to like about him. She could see them being friends if nothing else and if he was her friend, then she wanted to do everything in her powers to help alleviate his worries. She was that type of person. The type that wore their hearts on their sleeves and made the concern of others she cared about her own. So she couldn't just ignore what she just heard and saw. Kagome may put it aside for now if Shigure wanted but she was also stubborn enough to pursue this later until he eventually cracked.

"It won't do to worry about this now, snookums," Shigure insisted. His eyes immediately lit with amusement at how quickly Kagome's face soured at that little nickname. He barely bit back a chuckle as he stood up on shaky legs and offered his hand out for his wife to take.

"Don't call me that," Kagome mumbled, reluctantly taking up his hand. She practically bristled up, her frown deepening when she felt his arms wrapping around her, drawing her into a hug. She was reluctant to return back the hug to this infuriating man who was not only eluding her question but had the nerve to give her such an infuriating name.

"I was trying out a pet name for you. How about cuddle waddles or baby cakes?" he offered lightly. He gently tilted her head back so he could see the displeased face of his wife before he impulsively placed a kiss on her forehead. Her blush was immediate and it made him smile mischievously at how easily it was to embarrass and rile up his temporary wife before she retaliated with a smack to his chest. "So I'm guessing by that response that you don't like those either?" he asked, already knowing.

"Jerk, of course I don't like those. And you're trying to change the topic," she grumbled, ready to pull away. However, her trying to pull away only made her husband tighten his arm around her waist so that she remained firmly pressed up against him.

"Such a perceptive person you are, so that means my wife is not only beautiful but smart," he mused aloud. Then he playfully winced as Kagome smacked and pushed at his chest until he finally released her. His hand instinctively reaching out for her when she stumbled backwards to provide more distance only to almost fall backwards as she realized too late she was on stairs.

She was slow to thank Shigure as he righted her. Her heart thudded madly in her chest at her near death experience. Her eyes stubbornly looking down at her feet and not up at her highly amused husband. Kagome wondered to herself how quickly Shigure had gone from feeling shell-shocked and vulnerable to downright playful and affectionate.

'How much of it is real and how much is it forced?' she thought before stiffening as she felt his hands on her. At first she tried to reason to herself that Shigure must be trying to help straighten her outfit but his hands seemed to ling and caress her sides before settling on her slightly curvy hips. Her reaction was immediate as she automatically smacked his hands away and jabbed a finger firmly against his chest so that he had to stumble back, laughing nervously at his wife's fierceness.

"Don't you dare take my kindness for naivety, you lecher. Kami, sometimes you're worse than Miroku. I just… Please… I want to help. So tell me. M… maybe if I know I can help in some way," she practically begged towards the end. There was no longer any fight in her as she realized that Shigure was being this mischievous now as a way of creating a distance between them by making her feel uncomfortable.

Shigure let out a sigh of defeat, realizing that his wife wouldn't let go of this subject until he gave her something. And as much as he enjoyed teasing her to see how she'd react, he knew that if he didn't give her something either her or her dogs would snap at him for his choice of distraction. "There's no helping the inevitable but…" he trailed off with a sigh, this time of frustration.

His fingers combed through his well-groomed hair, messing it further as he thought carefully about how much he should reveal with so many witnesses around. "Well… I should have known the head of my family, the person you had had a verbal argument with, wouldn't take too kindly to me getting married. She was my first love, you know, one-sided on my part. Doubt she really loves anyone, except maybe Kureno... We grew up together and I** almost** consider her a dear friend. But honestly, I was too distracted by newlywed bliss to remember that Akito could be such a possessive bitch," he confessed, hoping that would appease Kagome for now. He had given her so much but so little at the same time.

"We… We didn't… you know?!" Kagome asked hesitantly. Her relief at Shigure giving her some information about what was going on was quickly overshadowed by him mentioning being distracted by 'newlywed bliss.' Her ears flushed once more in her embarrassment as she poked her index fingers together suggestively.

"Hmmm," hummed Shigure mysteriously, a slow, lazy smile spreading across his face. He honestly couldn't find anyone else he wouldn't want to see so flustered and anxious as much as the blushing bride before him. "You were a virgin?" Shigure asked, curious. The thing he liked more than high school girls were pretty virgins.

"You said were, didn't you? So it is true?" squeaked out Kagome, practically choking on her own anxiety. She had taken a step forward to close the distance between him, her grip firm on his collar as she tried to shake the infuriating man. "Don't just smile at me like an idiot, you lecher."

"I can't think when you're shaking me like a maraca," Shigure said passively. He didn't even bother to hide the fact that he was enjoying her turmoil a little too much.

"Well…" Kagome snapped, ready to call Kouga and Inuyasha on him if she didn't like his next words or actions.

Shigure quickly whipped out his fan from his sleeve and tapped the closed accessory against his chin, as he looked up at the sky thoughtfully. "I honestly don't know. I'm usually a functional drunk when I do drink but although some parts of the night are fairly crystal clear, there are others that are vague. Do you by chance have a butterfly tattoo on your pelvis bone?" Shigure asked inquisitively.

Kagome quickly released her firm grip on him, her blush creeping down to her cheeks as she quickly pivoted around and began to march purposely down the stairs, mortified.

"Oh, so I guessed right? Mind letting me see. I promise I won't touch… much," he chortled, following quickly behind, his open fan covering his lecherous smile.

"Kami I hate you. I can't believe I even bother showing concern for you. You, you baka!" she cried out, throwing her hands up in frustration. If it was Inuyasha who had tried to embarrass her like this she could have made him 'sit' and take pleasure in him face planting down onto the unforgiving ground. But not only would that most likely break something on her very human husband's body, the rosary beads would also most likely **not** work because he was in fact human. 'It's too bad I can't consult Kaede on this,' she thought mournfully as she bypassed her brother and her dogs to get in the rental car.

"Hey, baby, didn't you forget you tossed my phone? Mind you it was like a mother lion protecting her cubs, very Discovery Channel, very hot the way you wanted to protect me from Akito. But we can't go anywhere until I get it back," Shigure insisted tapping his now closed fan on the roof of the car.

"You get it. I'm not stopping you," Kagome spat out, irritated as she locked the car doors. If he hadn't teased her and given her ridiculous pet names then maybe she would have been willing to help him since she did toss it. She could only just take mild satisfaction in the way his crooked smile slip off his face and his grey eyes filled with surprised disbelief.

"You can't be serious? What happened to my sweet little wife that held my hand and wanted to help me work through my problems because she was that kind of person?" he insisted, jimmying the door handle of the car. He realized that sometimes he could take his jokes too far and he didn't know his wife well enough to know her limits but he really did need her help looking for his phone.

Kagome frowned, circling her face with her index finger as she looked up at her panicking husband. "Look at this face. Does it look like I'm playing? No. So march up there and while you are looking for your precious phone, think what you did to earn my scorn. Souta, Inuyasha and Kouga, don't help that man. He needs to learn a lesson," she ordered, her arms crossing her chest.

"Man, you haven't even gotten to your home yet and you're already in the dog house. Sucks to be you," Souta said, with a snort. He knew better than to disobey his sister's words. She was no longer the same naïve school girl who fell down the well to land in the fuedal era. Her travels with Inuyasha and the others had toughened her so that she wasn't some pushover that caved in just to please the masses. She cared about others but she wouldn't let them walk all over her.

"I'm sorry," Shigure offered as way of apology. He even popped out his bottom lip and let it tremble just a little bit in hopes that Kagome would take pity on him and possibly get out the car and help.

"Of course you are," Kagome murmured indulgently, slightly amused at how childish Shigure could be. She still remained firmly seated however and even entertained ideas of taking the driver's seat since she had more driving experience than her would-be-husband.

"Well then could you at least tell me where you threw my cell phone? I already forgot and you kind of have quite an arm on you," he confessed as he looked hopelessly at his unsympathetic wife. If it was Tohru he had teased, he knew the brunette would still have helped him out in the end, even if she remained flushed the remainder of the time.

"I threw it over there in those bushes. Yeah, right over there," she offered after rolling down her window. She pointed her finger at the place she had thrown it, remembering that she noted the position so she could help him find it later. Well until he started mercilessly teasing her.

"I hope our kids have a better time with you then I have!" Shigure shouted childishly over his shoulder as he stomped up the steps before stepping out into the grass where the bushes were a little bit away. He bemoaned the task of looking through the bushes, knowing he'd have a better time if Inuyasha and Kouga liked him enough to take sympathy on a fellow canine. But at least he could take mild satisfaction at hearing his wife's response to his off-handed comment.

"Wait…What? Are you serious about that?! I thought you were joking," squeaked out Kagome, suddenly throwing the car door open. She got up quickly and glared at her husband who turned his head to give her one of his slow and lazy kind of smiles.

"Well we'll see when we get home, now won't we Sugar Puss?"

A/N: Akito is a she in this story. In chapter five Shigure and Hatori referred to Akito as a 'he' in quotation marks to emphasis the fact that him being a he is questionable because they know the truth but don't want others to overhear and discover that no one else knows yet that he is really a she. The part where they refer to him as a 'he' would be in chapter five when Hatori warned Shigure about Akito catching wind of his marriage. But they are referring to Akito as a male in the same way as they did in the earlier manga before the big reveal. Until Shigure can fully trust Kagome, he can't reveal to her or her family about Akito but because Kagome interrupted a call with Akito he has no choice but to let the cat out of the bag. Kagome heard a female voice, if she meets Akito and hears that angry voice she'll put two and two together. So to recap, Akito is a girl, very few know, like in the manga. But Kagome knows because she argued with Akito who clearly was female.


End file.
